ZSpace: Pakistan’s Universities
September 27, 2010 By Pervez Hoodbhoy
Upset by drastic budget cuts imposed by the finance ministry, the vice-chancellors of 71 public sector universities are threatening to resign en-bloc. They rightly say that development projects are grounded, bills unpaid, and some buildings only half-constructed. Paying teacher salaries is also at risk. But a cash-strapped government retorts that its number-one priority is dealing with the flood devastation. It says it cannot afford the inflated budgets of previous years.
Of course, sooner or later a limited bailout and some compromises will be worked out. But one thing is certain – the party is now over. For years, money had rained down from the skies and been foolishly squandered. The Higher Education Commission’s profligacy and abuse of resources meant that, floods or no floods, disaster was in the making. But it simply chose not to look at red flags along the way.
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